Chapter 4: Into the Maw
The Shadow-Caves didn't just lack light; they seemed to consume it. As Cian stepped past the jagged limestone entrance, the sun of the Borderlands vanished, replaced by the eerie, rhythmic pulsing of violet crystals embedded in the damp walls.
Cian walked a pace behind Elara. She was back in her silver commander's plate, her platinum hair pulled into a tight, practical ponytail. Every few seconds, her hand would twitch toward the hilt of her new sword—a weapon forged from the resonance they had shared.
"Keep your breathing shallow," Elara whispered, her eyes scanning the ceiling where dark, leathery shapes clung to the stalactites. "The air here is laced with Abyssal miasma. For a Dross, it can be lethal."
[System Warning: Miasma Level 15%.]
[Resistance: Low. Suggestion: Stay within 2 meters of your Valkyrie to benefit from her 'Purifying Aura'.]
Cian stepped closer, almost brushing against her cape. "I'm fine. The System is filtering most of it out. But the map... it's going haywire. Nyx is close, but the signal is jumping."
"Nyx," Elara repeated the name, her voice laced with a mixture of professional respect and deep-seated rivalry. "The Shadow-Stalker. She's not like me, Cian. She wasn't trained in the Academy. She was raised in the pits of the Under-City. If she's down here, she's not looking for a rescue. She's looking for blood."
Suddenly, the ground beneath them vibrated. A high-pitched, metallic schwing echoed from the tunnel ahead, followed by a scream that was cut short by a wet thud.
"Go!" Elara commanded.
They burst into a wide central chamber. The sight was a nightmare. A dozen Shadow-Wolves lay slaughtered, their bodies sliced with such surgical precision that they hadn't even had time to bleed out before the cold took them.
In the center of the chamber stood a woman. She was small, lean, and dressed in dark, form-fitting leather that seemed to shift and flow like liquid shadow. Her hair was short, a jagged obsidian cut that framed a pale face marked with glowing violet tattoos. In each hand, she held a jagged obsidian dagger.
But she wasn't alone. Surrounding her were three Abyssal Sentinels—armored monstrosities twice the size of a man, their shields dripping with corrosive acid.
Nyx was wounded. A deep gash ran along her thigh, and her left arm hung limp. She was backed against a wall of glowing crystals, her eyes—cold, amethyst orbs—flickering with a terrifying, dying light.
"Step back, Princess," Nyx hissed as she saw Elara. Her voice was like velvet over gravel. "These three are mine."
"Don't be a fool, Nyx," Elara countered, drawing her silver blade. "You can't even stand."
"I don't need to stand to kill," Nyx spat, but as she tried to lung forward, her leg buckled.
One of the Sentinels raised its massive flail, the spikes glowing with a sickly green rot. It swung downward, aiming to crush the assassin where she lay.
"Cian! Now!" Elara yelled.
Cian didn't wait for the System prompt. He ran. He didn't head for the monster; he headed for Nyx. As the flail descended, he threw himself over her, his hands reaching out to grab her shoulders.
"What are you doing, you idiot?!" Nyx screamed, her daggers twitching toward his throat.
"I'm making a choice!" Cian roared.
[New Tie Detected: The Shadow-Stalker, Nyx.]
[Compatibility: 94% (Chaos Alignment).]
[Initiating Dual Link: The Aegis and the Fang!]
As Cian's hands touched Nyx's skin, a cold, dark energy surged into him. It wasn't the warm, steady heat of Elara; it was a biting, freezing wind that felt like it was tearing his veins apart.
[Warning: Conflicting Mana Types!]
[Hero's Body acting as a Fuse. Pain sensors at 80%.]
A burst of black and silver light exploded from the point of their contact. The Sentinel's flail hit an invisible wall of dark energy inches from Cian's head and shattered into a thousand pieces.
Nyx froze. She looked up at the "Dross" boy shielding her. She felt her drained mana pools suddenly overflow with a dark, violent power she had never felt before. The pain in her leg vanished, replaced by a predatory hunger.
[Sync Rate with Nyx: 5%... 10%...]
[Ability Unlocked: Phantom Step (Shared).]
"You..." Nyx whispered, her violet eyes widening as she felt Cian's soul brush against hers. "You're the one the shadows whispered about."
"Less talking," Cian gasped, his skin turning a faint shade of grey from the strain. "More... killing..."
Nyx grinned, a sharp, lethal expression. She vanished in a cloud of black smoke, reappearing instantly behind the three Sentinels.
"With pleasure."